To Kill A Mockingbird
by Kaiter1
Summary: Ponyboy needs a friend. He's narrowed his eyes and tries to ignore any loneliness, but he knows something is missing. Can he accept his past, and move on to his future?


_To Kill A Mockingbird _written by Harper Lee, and _The Outsiders_by S. E. Hinton are not owned by me. I receive nothing, nor do I expect too.

**This is a teaser and not the real begining.**

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"I want groups of two or three. You will be writing an essay, and creating a presentation. They both have to tie in somehow, but it's your call. I'm looking for more than a book report on this one guys, make me interested."

Jamie glanced up from her book to see if Mr. Bower was actually telling the truth. To Kill a Mocking Bird? Come, on, everyone read it years ago. She refused to join a group so some stupid greaser could use her brain to pass English. She put her nose back in her book and hoped to go unnoticed.

Jane, the teacher's pet, raised her hand; Jamie prepared to control the gag reflex. "Mr. Bower, how long can the essays be? I don't want to spend all my time writing, so the presentation can be even better! And shouldn't we pick our topics so we don't all get the same one? I pick Scout, Jem, and Dill, when they were playing on the porch. It was just so cute." Jamie convulsed, but strategically sitting in the back of the classroom she could do as she pleased and not be bothered.

"There is no required length, but it should be well developed. Write until you are finished. As for topics, as Jane brought up, you may all pick the same one, but as long as you care about it that's okay. I can tell if you chose a topic because you were passionate about it or if you thought it would be easy."

Jamie took out a piece of paper and wrote: Prejudice.  
She closed her eyes and could already see where the subtopics were and how they connected. A flow chart naturally formed without effort. School took little effort, not like life.

She tried to rub a headache out of her forehead.

"Why don't you join a group Jamie?" Mr. Bower said kindly.

"Because," Jamie said, not appreciating or returning the kind tone. "I don't need a group. I'll have to do it on my own anyway, and this way everyone in my group will get the grade they deserve."

Seemingly oblivious Mr. Bower smiled. "Ponyboy and Chris need a person, go join them."

Jamie looked up at him, "You can't be serious."

"I am actually. You'll get a zero if you're not in a group, it was in the directions."

She glowered as she roughly grabbed her things and stalked to the desk Ponyboy and Chris were sitting around.

As he realized what Mr. Bower was doing Ponyboy groaned inwardly. Jamie was an outcast and didn't fit in; working with her was exactly what he didn't need. She does her own thing, and that probably didn't include effort.

She planted herself in a chair and the boys got their first real look at Jamie. She was insolently reclined in the chair with arms crossed over a simple white blouse and plain jeans, a stark contrast to her scowl and dark eyes. Ponyboy was instantly put off by this girl's defiance, while Chris was instantly captivated.

Jamie rolled her eyes as the boys apprised her. "Are we going to do this or not?"

"Yeah, sure," the boys mumbled. Ponyboy had a game plan he thought could get them the best grade with minimal interaction.

"Okay guys, here's what we should do, our subject should be maturation, how Jem and Scout grow up during the book. We can write an essay about that and make a poster describing the main points for our presentation."

Chris nodded and looked at Jamie for a reaction. She shook her head, "That's exactly the opposite from what he's looking for. He doesn't want you to do the assignment he could have given you, when you have all this creative freedom. Someone as smart as you should know that," Jamie said.

"My idea's fine. I don't see you coming up with anything," Ponyboy said, getting more irritated.

"Your idea is a pantywaist, and I could come up with a better one in my sleep." She snapped calmly back.

"So why don't you?"

"Because I like to see you upset."

"And you like to be lazy."

She paused. "Really, is that what you think?" A smile spread across her lips. "God, this is going to be fun."

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a/n: I really would appreciate to hear what you think of this!


End file.
